Panama Probe: Another deadlock over ToRs

ISLAMABAD: Deadlock has emerged between the government and opposition parties over the preparation of TORs, to investigate the Panama Leaks.PTI’s Shah Mahmood Qureshi confirmed the deadlock and said the government team has refused to accept the TORs of the opposition.Aitzaz Ahsan and Shah Mahmood Qureshi talking inform ally to media said the name of the Prime Minister has not been removed but an offer was made that if the government team accepts all the TORs of the joint opposition, Mr Nawaz Sharif’s name as prime minister could be deleted but his name would remain in the TORs as father of Hussain Nawaz.Aitzaz denied differences in the joint opposition over the exclusion of the name of the Prime Minister.Senator Aitzaz Ahsan rejectedon Fridaymedia reports that joint opposition had agreed to remove Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s name from the terms of reference (TORs) for an inquiry into the Panama Papers scandal.“The opposition stands by its demand of accountability from the prime minister and his family,” the PPP lawmaker, who is also a member of the TOR committee, told media menon Friday.“The name of the prime minister gets incorporated in the probe owing to the investigation from his children Maryam and Hussain which is why the opposition has not stepped down from its demand of the accountability of the premier.”He said the government team has been asked to give counter proposals to the Opposition’s which they would giveon Monday.PTI’s Shah Mahmood Qureshi said there was not a single inch of movement in the talks today (Friday) and the joint opposition did not backdown from its principled stand. He reiterated that if therewasprogress, it would be in totality of the joint oppositionTORs and not in piecemeal.He further said that if 15 TORs of the opposition were not accepted, the preamble agreedon Thursdayshould be considered as rejected. He said the opposition will not come under pressure. He said it was responsibility of the government team to remove the deadlock.According to reports, the joint opposition insisted the acceptance of all the TORs of the opposition but the government team resisted to the demand and refused to accept the opposition view point.The joint opposition had entered into negotiations with the government with a primary demand that any investigations into the Panamagate scandal should start from the premier and his family who have been named in the trove of leaked documents about offshore companies formed in international tax havens.The financial scandal lately has seen the government and the opposition, mainlyPakistanTehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), organise mass rallies to garner public support for their respective stances.Meanwhile a press release by the national assembly said the Parliamentary Committee on Panama Papers etc. continued discussion of the Terms of Reference proposed by the Government and Opposition.Government Committee members’ response to the Opposition members’ document titled “Government’s Para-wise reply to Joint Opposition’s submission on ToRs dated May 26, 2016” was circulated by the Government side among the members of the Committee. The Government side also circulated among the members a document mentioning relevant legal provisions/comments relating to the fifteen questions contained in the said Joint Opposition’s ToRs. The Committee agreed to continue its discussion on the Terms of Reference in subsequent meetings.The Opposition Members stated that they had proposed to drop Question Nos. (xii) and (xiii) subject to the acceptance of the remaining thirteen questions by the Government members.The fifteen questions proposed by the Joint Opposition were discussed. The Government members did not accept these in the present form and proposed to submit re-articulated/fresh proposals.Mr. Zahid Hamid, MNA, has been included as Member of the Parliamentary Committee on Panama Papers etc. in place of Khawaja Muhammad Asif, MNA. There will be no ex-officio member of the Parliamentary Committee on Panama Papers, etc.Senators Mr. Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Mr. Aitzaz Ahsan, Mir Hasil Khan Bizenjo, Mr. Muhammad Ali Saif and Mr. Ilyas Ahmad Bilour; and Members of the National Assembly Mr. Zahid Hamid, Khawaja Saad Rafique, Ms. Anusha Rehman Khan Advocate, Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Hussain Qureshi, Sahibzada Tariq Ullah and Ch. Tariq Bashir Cheema attended the meeting as members of the Committee. The meeting was held on Friday, the 27th May, 2016 in the Parliament House,Islamabad.The next meeting of the Committee will be heldon Monday30thMay, 2016 at4:00 p.m.in Committee Room No. 5, Parliament House,Islamabad.